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Somebody needs to kickstart the movement. After that, it won’t be stopped.
They make up half the world's population, so why on earth wouldn’t you direct your offering and message to the women out there? You should. For ethic's sake and for money's sake. Representation is getting better, but we’re still far from home. The moment it doesn’t require an extra effort to have a woman on the board of a football club, the moment it doesn’t cause a stir to have a woman referee, then we might be getting somewhere. Somewhere we always should have been.
As is
How do the effects of social change become default? It’s the million-dollar question. It wouldn’t hurt to acknowledge our limitations as a brand in this topic. You can’t close a gender gap with good intentions alone. But you can enforce a movement. Women sporters are here and here to stay, so it’s time for brands to educate themselves on the differences and nuances of these players and their fans. Because women's football isn't men's football with ponytails, it’s a different game and style altogether. The same goes for basketball or cycling. Branding isn’t a one size fits all game, everyone wants fresh merch and a personal approach.
Could be
Women’s sports is not a CSR project.
Brands have a role to play, a gap to fill, but we will not close it by ourselves. Once society has established equal play, we go for equal pay. However, if the question is ‘should the women earn more or should Messi earn less?’, it’s not up to marketeers to answer. Brands don’t have to save the world—or women for that matter. They should, however, treat them as humans, as human as men.
An important point here: brands are not alone in achieving this monumental shift. They’re part of an ecosystem that, if its elements work as one, has the leverage to create lasting societal change. Because without the brands, there are no clubs. And without the media, there are no brands. Clearly, RBFA and Sporza have understood this dynamic, hence their high-level collaboration that attracts eyeballs, which in turn attract potential brands. It’s called synergy, and it has potential to move mountains if it’s applied to the right cause.